Davolt v. Executive Committee of O'Reilly Automotive, 206 F.3d 806 (8^th Cir. 2000) -The O'Reilly Automotive health plan appealed the district court's decision in favor of Davolt.  Davolt claimed coverage for vascular disease surgery.  O'Reilly had denied coverage because Davolt’s vascular disease was a preexisting condition.  O'Reilly first challenged the district court's standard of review over the administrator's decision.

            This court agreed that the district court had used an improper standard of review, pointing out that although the fact that a plan administrator is also the insurer may give rise to a conflict of interest, the district court erred when it assumed an automatic conflict of interest existed.  This court concluded that it need not resolve the question, because any standard of review would yield the same result.  The plain language of the plan supported O'Reilly's denial.  The district court was simply incorrect in finding that the preexisting condition clause excluded only those conditions originally diagnosed or originally treated during the six-month waiting period before coverage.  The preexisting condition clause also included previously diagnosed conditions for which the patient received treatment during the waiting period.